Canva said in an announcement that organisations are "data-rich, but decision-poor" despite growing data use, citing a survey of 2,457 marketing and sales professionals across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.
The Beyond the Numbers study found 74% reported greater reliance on data over the past two years, 89% work with data weekly, more than 65% feel anxious working with data, 30% actively avoid it, and UK confidence falls from 82% to 42% when tasks become data-heavy.
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The announcement links the gap to human visual perception and chart design, noting people judge position and length more accurately than area, volume or colour; as a result, bar charts communicate more clearly than pie charts or shaded maps. The report also records that 75% of marketers feel confident analysing data but 57% admit spreadsheet errors that affect their work, while 88% say data visualisations enhance credibility and 83% feel more confident when presenting with them. "The goal isn't to make everyone a data scientist," the report says.
Canva frames the solution as a technology and design problem: more than 85% of professionals indicate they would likely adopt tools that simplify data visualisation, and nearly half expect AI to recommend formats and surface insights rather than replace human judgment. The company warns that when people feel intimidated by chart rules they default to the fastest option, and it directs readers to read the full report on its Newsroom for methodology and fuller findings.
The recap
- Canva surveyed 2,457 marketing and sales professionals across three regions.
- 74% reported greater reliance on data over past two years.
- Read the full report on the Canva Newsroom for details.
